Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov gave a jaw-dropping interview with ABC News in which he stated unequivocally that US sanctions are pushing Russia towards developing alternatives to the dollar reserve currency system.

During the interview, Ryabkov states that Russia is prepared to go tit-for-tat with any US sanctions imposed on Moscow. Asked about whether the Russian economy could withstand a serious sanctions war, Ryabkov doubles down and says that not only is Russia prepared to go toe-to-toe with Washington, it's also closer to developing an alternative to the dollar-based reserve currency system:

Q: You’ve talked about the Russian economy not being in tatters, but you are emerging from a recession. Can Russia really afford to do this with the US as its third largest trading partner?

Ryabkov: I think we can, and I think also every single step that people—on the Hill in particular—take to make our lives more difficult brings us closer to the moment when we will develop all sorts of alternatives to the US financial system, to the dollar reserve currency system, the dollar-based reserve currency system, to all sorts of areas where the whole world and not just Russia is dependent on very frivolous actions on the part of the US.

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